ultrasound unit for home

I posted the same question a year or so ago and got many "don't do it" responses! LOL!

Figured I should clarify after posting a smart aleck- comment. I apologize for doing that and should make sure I give a more tempered reply.

My primary intent is to make sure a clear impression of ultrasound is portrayed. I am currently a cardiology fellow with focus on noninvasive imaging, specifically echocardiography and am about to sit for echo boards.  During all my training I happened to work in a research lab describing sonothrombolysis (therapeutic ultrasound) in a stroke model, and have had many dinner conversations with the primary investigator (aka my Dad) on the subject. My sister has added input as a physical therapist who uses ultrasound routinely in the context mentioned above.

I am a pretty strong advocate at my hospital for the use of ultrasound in my specialty. I actually agree having competent diagnosis and therapies for my patients, and agree with limiting some therapies that might be riskier. I harp on this with the resident physicians I teach. From the diagnostic ultrasound experience, there have been no cases documented of harm from diagnostic ultrasound in the cardiology lab (Aside from cannulation issues with our invasive probes). Actively thrombolysing clots, where more energy is applied and can cause sheer stress and bleeding complications- some of which are directly caused by mechanical energy from the ultrasound. These are however used in a completely different population, and are different energy levels and pulse patterns than what is used in the physical therapy realm. In general, the physical therapy ultrasounds are not the same as what we use for sonothrombolysis or stone lithotripsy, and are much "safer," with more room for error so to speak. And to correct my statement before, I guess you could technically "liquify" fat cells with therapeutic ultrasound to a certain degree Honestly, I would assume they are pretty safe when used as directed- short periods of time multiple times a week. With that being said, I am always fearful of misdiagnosis, delaying proper treatment for injuries while potentially causing harm with the device. Definitely look for a competent physical therapist/ sports medicine doc, and work with them on making sure your treatments are appropriate. 

Ben Culp, MD